United States National Academy of Engineering
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American nonprofit,
non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from g ...
. The National Academy of Engineering is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), the
National Academy of Medicine The National Academy of Medicine (NAM), formerly called the Institute of Medicine (IoM) until 2015, is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Medicine is a part of the National Academies of Sciences, Eng ...
, and the
National Research Council National Research Council may refer to: * National Research Council (Canada), sponsoring research and development * National Research Council (Italy), scientific and technological research, Rome * National Research Council (United States), part of ...
(now the program units of NASEM). The NAE operates engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. New members are annually elected by current members, based on their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research. The NAE is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the rest of the National Academies the role of advising the federal government.


History

The National Academy of Sciences was created by an Act of Incorporation dated March 3, 1863, which was signed by then
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...
Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...
with the purpose to "...investigate, examine, experiment, and report upon any subject of science or art..." No reference to engineering was in the original act, the first recognition of any engineering role was with the setup of the Academy's standing committees in 1899. At that time, there were six standing committees: (mathematics and astronomy; physics and engineering; chemistry; geology and paleontology; biology; and anthropology. In 1911, this committee structure was again reorganized into eight committees: biology was separated into botany; zoology and animal morphology; and physiology and pathology; anthropology was renamed anthropology and psychology with the remaining committees including physics and engineering, unchanged. In 1913, George Ellery Hale presented a paper on the occasion of the Academy's 50th anniversary, outlining an expansive future agenda for the Academy. Hale proposed a vision of an Academy that interacted with the "whole range of science", one that actively supported newly recognized disciplines, industrial sciences and the humanities. The proposed creation of sections of medicine and engineering was protested by one member because those professions were "mainly followed for pecuniary gain". Hale's suggestions were not accepted. Nonetheless, in 1915, the Section of Physics and Engineering was recommended to be changed to physics only, and a year later the Academy began planning a separate section of engineering. That same year of 1913, the Academy was requested to investigate the great slide in
Culebra Cut The Culebra Cut, formerly called Gaillard Cut, is an artificial valley that cuts through the Continental Divide in Panama. The cut forms part of the Panama Canal, linking Gatun Lake, and thereby the Atlantic Ocean, to the Gulf of Panama and henc ...
late in 1913 which ultimately delayed the opening of the
Panama canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a condui ...
by ten months. The study group, commissioned by the
United States Army Corps of Engineers , colors = , anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day) , battles = , battles_label = Wars , website = , commander1 = ...
and although composed of both engineers and geologists resulted in a final report prepared by two geologists
Charles Whitman Cross Charles Whitman Cross (September 1, 1854 – April 20, 1949) was an American geologist. He was educated at Amherst College, the University of Göttingen, and Leipzig University. A petrologist, much of his field work concerned rocks in Colorado. ...
and
Harry Fielding Reid Harry Fielding Reid (May 18, 1859 – June 18, 1944) was an American geophysicist. He was notable for his contributions to seismology, particularly his theory of elastic rebound that related faults to earthquakes. Early life Harry Fielding Reid ...
. The report, submitted to President Wilson in November 1917, concluded that claims of repeated interruptions in canal traffic for years to come were unjustified. During this time, the United States confronted the prospect of war with Germany and the question of preparedness was raised. Engineering societies responded to this crisis by offering technical services to the Federal government such as the
Naval Consulting Board The Naval Consulting Board, also known as the Naval Advisory Board (a name used in the 1880s for two previous committees), was a US Navy organization established in 1915 by Josephus Daniels, the Secretary of the Navy at the suggestion of Thomas A ...
of 1915 and the
Council of National Defense The Council of National Defense was a United States organization formed during World War I to coordinate resources and industry in support of the war effort, including the coordination of transportation, industrial and farm production, financial s ...
of 1916. On June 19 of that year, then US President
Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...
requested the National Academy of Sciences to organize a "National Research Council" albeit with the assistance of the Engineering Foundation. (pg. 569) The purpose of the Council (at first called the National Research Foundation) was in part to foster and encourage "the increased use of scientific research in the development of American industries... the employment of scientific methods in strengthening the national defense... and such other applications of science as will promote the national security and welfare." During the period of national preparations, an increasing number of engineers were being elected to the physics and engineering section of the Academy, this did not, however, resolve the long-standing issue of where to place applied sciences such as engineering in the Academy. In 1863, the founding members who were prominent military and naval engineers comprised almost a fifth of the membership. during the latter part of the 19th century, this engineering membership steadily declined and by 1912,
Henry Larcom Abbot Henry Larcom Abbot (August 13, 1831 – October 1, 1927) was a military engineer and career officer in the United States Army. He served in the Union Army during the American Civil War and was appointed brevet brigadier general of volunteers f ...
, who had been elected in 1872, was the sole remaining representative of the Corps of Engineers. With the Engineering Division in the wartime National Research Council being used as a precedent, the Academy established its first engineering section with nine members in 1919 with civil war veteran Henry Larcom Abbot as its first chairman. OF those nine members, only two were new members, the others had transferred from existing sections; "... of the 164 members of the Academy that year, only seven chose to identify themselves as engineers."Pursell, Carroll. "Engineering Organization and the Scientist in World War I: The Search for National Service and Recognition." Prometheus 24.3 (2006): 257-268. During this period of 1915-1916 activity by engineering societies, the National Academy of Sciences complained that there was a lack of scientists and the predominance of engineers on the Federal government's wartime technical committee, the Naval Consulting Board. One of the mathematicians on the Board,
Robert Simpson Woodward Robert Simpson Woodward (July 21, 1849 – June 29, 1924) was an American civil engineer, physicist and mathematician. Biography He was born at Rochester, Michigan on July 21, 1849, to Lysander Woodward and Peninah A. Simpson.
, was actually trained and early on practiced as a civil engineer. The Academy's response was to move forward with the idea of achieving Academy control over the provision of technical services to the Government by means of formal recognition of the role played by the National Research Council (NRC) established the next year in 1916. Later in 1918, Wilson formalized the NRC's existence under
Executive Order In the United States, an executive order is a directive by the president of the United States that manages operations of the federal government. The legal or constitutional basis for executive orders has multiple sources. Article Two of t ...
2859. Wilson's order declared the function of the NRC to be in general: :''"(T)o stimulate research in the mathematical. physical, and biological sciences. and in the application of these sciences to engineering, agriculture. medicine. and other useful arts. with the object of increasing knowledge, of strengthening the national defense, and of contributing in other ways to the public welfare."'' In 1960,
Augustus Braun Kinzel Augustus Braun Kinzel (July 26, 1900 – October 23, 1987) was a noted American metallurgist and first president of the National Academy of Engineering. Biography Kinzel was born in New York City. He received his A.B. in mathematics from Columbia ...
, an engineer with the Union Carbide Corporation and a member of the Academy, stated that the "..engineering profession was considering the establishment of an academy of engineering..." confirmed by the Engineers Joint Council of the national engineering societies to afford themselves of opportunities and services similar to those the Academy provided in science. The question being, whether to affiliate with the National Academy or set up a separate Academy. During the past century of the Academy's existence, engineers had been part of the founding members and a sixth of its membership, the founding of the National Research Council in 1916 with the assistance of the Engineering Foundation, the contributions of the NRC Division of Engineering in the post-World War I period, the presidency of engineer Frank B. Jewett during World War II. In short, "...the ascendancy of science in the public mind since World War I had been partly at the expense of the prestige of the engineering profession." (See also.) The Academy worked with the Engineers Joint Council led by President Eric Arthur Walker as the prime mover, to make plans to establish a new National Academy of Engineering that's independent, with a congressional charter of its own. Walker noted that this moment offered a "...singular opportunity for the engineering profession to participate actively and directly in communicating objective advice to the government..." on engineering matters related to national policy. A secondary function was to recognize distinguished individuals for their engineering contributions. Ultimately, the initial organizers decided to create the Academy of Engineering as part of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). On December 5, 1964, marking, "a major landmark in the history of the relationships between science and engineering in our country," the Academy approved the Articles of Incorporation of the new academy and its twenty-five charter members met to organize the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) as an autonomous parallel body in the National Academy of Sciences, with Augustus B. Kinzel as its first President. OF the 675 members of the National Academy of Sciences at that time, only about 30 called themselves engineers. The National Academy of Engineering then were a "purposeful compromise" given the fears of the NAS of expanded membership by engineers. The stated objects and purposes of the newly created National Academy of Engineering were to: * To advise the Congress and the executive branch... whenever called upon... on matters of national import pertinent to engineering... * To cooperate with the National Academy of Sciences on matters involving both science and engineering... * To serve the nation... in connection with significant problems in engineering and technology... In 1966, the National Academy of Engineering established the Committee on Public Engineering Policy (COPEP). In 1982, the NAE and NAS committees were merged to become the Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy. In 1967, the NAE formed an aeronautics and space engineering board to advise NASA and other Federal agencies chaired by Horton Guyford Stever. In 1971, the National Academy of Engineering advised the
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, PANYNJ; stylized, in logo since 2020, as Port Authority NY NJ, is a joint venture between the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, established in 1921 through an interstate compact authorize ...
not to construct additional runways at
JFK airport John F. Kennedy International Airport (colloquially referred to as JFK Airport, Kennedy Airport, New York-JFK, or simply JFK) is the main international airport serving New York City. The airport is the busiest of the seven airports in the New ...
as part of a $350,000 study commissioned by the Port Authority. The Port Authority accepted the recommendations of the NAE and NAS. In 1975, the NAE added eighty-six new engineer members including noted civil engineer and businessman Stephen Davison Bechtel Jr. In 1986, Tha NAE issued a report encouraging foreign investment, calling for stronger Federal action. That same year, NAE member Robert W. Rummel (1915-2009), space expert and aerospace engineer, served on The Presidential Commission on the Space Shuttle Challenger Accident. In 1989, the National Academy of Engineering in conjunction with the National Academy of Science advised the
Department of Energy A Ministry of Energy or Department of Energy is a government department in some countries that typically oversees the production of fuel and electricity; in the United States, however, it manages nuclear weapons development and conducts energy-re ...
on a site location for the then proposed
Superconducting Super Collider The Superconducting Super Collider (SSC) (also nicknamed the desertron) was a particle accelerator complex under construction in the vicinity of Waxahachie, Texas. Its planned ring circumference was with an energy of 20 TeV per proton and was ...
(SSC) from a number of States proposals. In 1995, the NAE along with the NAS and the
National Academy of Medicine The National Academy of Medicine (NAM), formerly called the Institute of Medicine (IoM) until 2015, is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Medicine is a part of the National Academies of Sciences, Eng ...
reported that the American system of doctoral education in science and engineering, while "...long a world model, should be reshaped to produce more 'versatile scientists,' rather than narrowly specialized researchers". Again in 2000, NAE returned to this education theme with its detailed studies of engineering education as part of its "Engineer of 2020 Studies" project. The reports concluded that engineering education must be reformed or American engineers will be poorly prepared for engineering practice. Soon after, the American Society of Civil Engineers adopted a policy advocating for the reconstruction of the academic foundation of the professional practice of civil engineering.


Membership

Formally, members of the NAE must be
U.S. citizen Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Constituti ...
s.Becoming a Member
NAE website.
The term "international member" is applied to non-citizens who are elected to the NAE. "The NAE has more than 2,000 peer-elected members and international members, senior professionals in business, academia, and government who are among the world's most accomplished engineers", according to the NAE site's About page. Election to the NAE is considered to be among the highest recognitions in engineering-related fields, and it often comes as a recognition of a lifetime's worth of accomplishments. Nomination for membership can only be done by a current member of the NAE for outstanding engineers with identifiable contributions or accomplishments in one or both of the following categories: * Engineering research, practice, or education, including, where appropriate, significant contributions to the engineering literature. * Pioneering of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of engineering, or developing/implementing innovative approaches to engineering education. Since its founding, the Academy has elected 2,634 members. The
Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...
is associated with the most members, 199 or some 8% of the all-time total, while Stanford University is affiliated with 168 members and the
University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...
with 130. The top eleven institutions account for over 30% of all members ever elected.


Program areas


Greatest Engineering Achievements of the 20th Century

In February 2000, a National Press Club luncheon during National Engineers Week 2000 sponsored by the NAE, astronaut/engineer Neil Armstrong announced the 20 top engineering achievements having the greatest impact on the quality of life in the 20th century.Business, &. Manufacturing Editors, "National Academy of Engineering Reveals Top Engineering Impacts of the 20th Century: Electrification Cited as most Important." Business Wire, Feb 22, 2000, pp. 1, ABI/INFORM Collection; ProQuest Central, Twenty-nine professional engineering societies provided 105 nominations which then selected and ranked the top 20 achievements. The nominations were pared to less than fifty and then combined into 29 larger categories. :"Thus, bridges, tunnels, and roads were merged into the interstate highway system, and tractors, combines, robot cotton pickers, and chisel plows were simply lumped into agricultural mechanization."Goodwin, Irwin. "Engineers proclaim top achievements of 20th century, but neglect attributing feats to roots in physics." Physics Today 53.5 (2000): 48-49. Some of the achievements, though, such as the telephone and the automobile which were not invented in the 20th century were included because of the impact they had were not really apparent until the 20th century. The top achievement, electrification is essential for almost part of modern society and has "...literally lighted the world and impacted countless areas of daily life, including food production and processing, air conditioning and heating, refrigeration, entertainment, transportation, communication, health care, and computers." Later in 2003, the National Academy of Engineering published ''A Century of Innovation: Twenty Engineering Achievements that Transformed our Lives''. The ranked list of the top 20 achievements in the 20th century was published as follows: #
Electrification Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source. The broad meaning of the term, such as in the history of technology, economic histor ...
#
Automobile A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarde ...
#
Airplane An airplane or aeroplane (informally plane) is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, Propeller (aircraft), propeller, or rocket engine. Airplanes come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and wing configurat ...
# Water Supply and Distribution #
Electronics The field of electronics is a branch of physics and electrical engineering that deals with the emission, behaviour and effects of electrons using electronic devices. Electronics uses active devices to control electron flow by amplification ...
#
Radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmi ...
and
Television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
# Agricultural Mechanization # Computers #
Telephone A telephone is a telecommunications device that permits two or more users to conduct a conversation when they are too far apart to be easily heard directly. A telephone converts sound, typically and most efficiently the human voice, into e ...
#
Air Conditioning Air conditioning, often abbreviated as A/C or AC, is the process of removing heat from an enclosed space to achieve a more comfortable interior environment (sometimes referred to as 'comfort cooling') and in some cases also strictly controlling ...
and
Refrigeration The term refrigeration refers to the process of removing heat from an enclosed space or substance for the purpose of lowering the temperature.International Dictionary of Refrigeration, http://dictionary.iifiir.org/search.phpASHRAE Terminology, ht ...
#
Highways A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-access ...
#
Spacecraft A spacecraft is a vehicle or machine designed to fly in outer space. A type of artificial satellite, spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, Earth observation, meteorology, navigation, space colonization, p ...
#
Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...
#
Imaging Imaging is the representation or reproduction of an object's form; especially a visual representation (i.e., the formation of an image). Imaging technology is the application of materials and methods to create, preserve, or duplicate images. ...
#
Household Appliances A major appliance, also known as a large domestic appliance or large electric appliance or simply a large appliance, large domestic, or large electric, is a non-portable or semi-portable machine used for routine housekeeping tasks such as cookin ...
# Health Technologies #
Petroleum Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crud ...
and Petrochemical Technologies #
Laser A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word "laser" is an acronym for "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation". The fi ...
and Fiber Optics # Nuclear Technologies # High-performance Materials


Reception

The NAE's achievements list was criticized for ranking space technology (listed as "Spacecraft") twelfth instead of number one despite NAE recognizing in its report that the Soviet Union's Sputnik "shocked the world and started a space race that launched the greatest engineering team effort in American history." (NAE, 2000) ''
Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...
'' magazine ran a similar poll of 20th-century accomplishments, and its website users ranked the first Moon landing in 1969 in second place versus NAE's 12th. The NAE listing was also criticized for not recognizing the role physics played in laying the foundations for the engineering accomplishments such
Michael Faraday Michael Faraday (; 22 September 1791 – 25 August 1867) was an English scientist who contributed to the study of electromagnetism and electrochemistry. His main discoveries include the principles underlying electromagnetic inducti ...
and Joseph Henry for electrification. NAE's list ranked electronics based upon two inventions, the transistor and integrated circuits, even it neglected to mention their physicist inventors, John Bardeen, Walter H. Brattain, William B. Shockley,
Jack Kilby Jack St. Clair Kilby (November 8, 1923 – June 20, 2005) was an American electrical engineer who took part (along with Robert Noyce of Fairchild) in the realization of the first integrated circuit while working at Texas Instruments (TI) in 1 ...
and Robert Noyce. Another commentator noted that the list ignored the St. Lawrence seaway and power project, built between 1954 and 1959 and by extension the
Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a condui ...
. The St. Lawrence seaway was "...one of the largest transborder projects ever undertaken by two countries and one of the greatest engineering achievements of the 20th century." It was also noted that these 20th-century accomplishments did not come without impacts on the environment or societies.Petroski, Henry. "Great Achievements & Grand Challenges." Civil Engineering Magazine Archive 80.2 (2010): 48-57. Electrification as an example, resulting in fossil-fuel-burning power plants, airplanes and automobiles which emit
greenhouse gases A greenhouse gas (GHG or GhG) is a gas that absorbs and emits radiant energy within the thermal infrared range, causing the greenhouse effect. The primary greenhouse gases in Earth's atmosphere are water vapor (), carbon dioxide (), methane ...
while electronics manufacturing leaves heavy-metal byproducts.


Grand Challenges for Engineering

The Grand Challenges confront wicked social issues that are inherently global in nature and require technological innovations and applications of systems thinking. Further, NAE argues that the solutions call upon engineers to persuasively influence "...public policy, transfer technical innovation to the market place, and to inform and be informed by social science and the humanities."Workshop on developing a national network of Grand Challenge Scholars Programs, 2010, National Academy of Engineering, Washington, DC. Accessed a

on November 3, 2017.
The NAE's Grand Challenges overlap with the United Nations'
Millennium Development Goals The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were eight international development goals for the year 2015 that had been established following the Millennium Summit of the United Nations in 2000, following the adoption of the United Nations Millenn ...
and its 2015 successor, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which all depend upon "a strong engineering component" for success.


Development of the Grand Challenges (2008)

The Academy introduced its "Grand Challenges for Engineering" project in 2007 with the commissioning of a blue-ribbon committee composed of leading technological thinkers from around the globe.National Academy of Engineering (NAE), Annual Report for 2007, Washington, DC, Accessed a

/ref> The committee, led by former Secretary of Defense William J. Perry, William Perry was charged with the task of identifying "..key engineering challenges for improving life in the 21st century." NAE's intent was to develop a set of challenges of such importance that they warranted serious investment and if successful, would "lead to a marked improvement in our quality of life."National Academy of Engineering, Annual Report for 2008, Washington, DC, Letter from President, Accessed a

/ref> The project received "...thousands of inputs from around the world to determine its list of Grand Challenges for Engineering, and its report was reviewed by more than 50 subject-matter experts, making it among the most reviewed of Academy studies." In February 2008, the committee announced 14 Engineering Grand Challenges fitting into four broad categories: energy, sustainability, and global climate change; medicine, health informatics and health care delivery systems; reducing our vulnerability to natural and human threats; and advancing the human spirit and capabilities. NAE noted that a number of engineering schools had developed coursework based upon Grand Challenge themes.
The 14 Grand Challenges for Engineering developed by the NAE committee were to: :Make Outline of solar energy, solar energy economical :Provide energy from
fusion Fusion, or synthesis, is the process of combining two or more distinct entities into a new whole. Fusion may also refer to: Science and technology Physics *Nuclear fusion, multiple atomic nuclei combining to form one or more different atomic nucl ...
:Develop
carbon sequestration Carbon sequestration is the process of storing carbon in a carbon pool. Carbon dioxide () is naturally captured from the atmosphere through biological, chemical, and physical processes. These changes can be accelerated through changes in lan ...
:Manage the nitrogen cycle :Provide access to clean water :Restore and Improve urban infrastructure :Advance health informatics : Engineer better medicines : Reverse-engineer the brain : Prevent nuclear terror : Secure cyberspace : Enhance virtual reality :Advance
personalized learning Personalized learning, individualized instruction, personal learning environment and direct instruction all refer to efforts to tailor education to meet the different needs of students. Overview The use of the term "personalized learning" dates ba ...
:Engineer the tools of scientific discovery. NAE noted in its report that the Grand Challenges for Engineering were not "...ranked in importance or likelihood of solution, nor was any strategy proposed for solving them. Rather, they were offered as a way to inspire the profession, young people, and the public at large to seek the solutions."Front Matter." National Academy of Engineering. 2016. Grand Challenges for Engineering: Imperatives, Prospects, and Priorities: Summary of a Forum. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23440. NAE also stated that the Grand Challenges were "...not targeted to any one country or corporate sector... (and)... are relevant to everyone in every country. In fact, some of them bear on the very survival of society. If solving these challenges can become an international movement, all will benefit."


Reception

One writer favorably observed that the Academy's list of 20th-century engineering achievements was dominated by devices and when asked to project advances for the 21st, the result was again, device dominated.KATSOULEAS, TOM. "LAST WORD: New Challenges, Same Education?." ASEE Prism 18.8 (2009): 60-60. Accessed a

/ref> With respect to the Grand Challenges, the NAE reframed its discussion from being device-centric to addressing complex or wicked social issues that cannot be solved by technology alone, i.e. more devices. With the Grand Challenges though, NAE "...charted a course for... (engineering)... to move from devices to global social challenges, and has identified a number of exciting ones." One critical reaction to the NAE's challenges noted that engineers today are the "...unacknowledged legislators of the world... (and by)... designing and constructing new structures, processes, and products, they are influencing how we live as much as any laws enacted by politicians.Mitcham, Carl. "The true grand challenge for engineering: Self-knowledge." Issues in Science and Technology 31.1 (2014): 19-22. The author argued that NAE's Grand Challenges should have included the "...challenge of thinking about what we are doing as we turn the world into an (engineering) artifact and the appropriate limitations of this engineering power." This is already happening in the
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
with its
Delta Works The Delta Works ( nl, Deltawerken) is a series of construction projects in the southwest of the Netherlands to protect a large area of land around the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta from the sea. Constructed between 1954 and 1997, the works con ...
as an example of a society being an engineered artifact but also with a community of philosophers of engineering and technology. Another commentator observed that challenges with respect to sustainability concentrated on specific elements of the problem without addressing "... "what level of energy use would be sustainable on a global scale." While India and China are 1000-1500 Watt per person societies, the United States requires 12,000 W per person. An estimate of a sustainable level of power consumption made by a Swiss group is 2,000 W per person. Similar questions were raised on the NAE's challenge for access to clean water. The average daily per capita water consumption in American cities varies from 130 to 2000 liters (35 to 530 gallons).


Grand Challenge Scholars Program (GCSP)

In 2010, NAE developed a plan for preparing engineering students at the undergraduate academic degree level to practice in career fields that emerged as a result of the effort to answer the Grand Challenges. The program had five components, namely: * Research experience based upon a project or independent research related to a NAE Grand Challenges. * Interdisciplinary curriculum materials inclusive of "..public policy, business, law, ethics, human behavior, risk as well as medicine and the sciences." *
Entrepreneurship Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values t ...
inclusive of skills to translate "...invention to innovation... (and)... develop market ventures that scale to global solutions in the public interest." * Global dimension and perspective necessary to "..address challenges that are inherently global as well as to lead innovation in a global economy." * Service learning that develops and engages the engineer's social consciousness and its willingness to bring to bear the profession's technical expertise on societal problems through programs such as
Engineers Without Borders The term Engineers Without Borders (EWB; french: Ingénieurs sans frontières, ISF) is used by a number of non-governmental organizations in various countries to describe their activity based on engineering and oriented to international development ...
, or Engineering World Health.


STEM education, Technological Literacy and the Grand Challenges

While the National Academy of Engineering's GC SCholars (GCSP) program was primarily focused on undergraduate level curriculums, STEM focuses on
K–12 education K-1 is a professional kickboxing promotion established in 1993, well known worldwide mainly for its heavyweight division fights and Grand Prix tournaments. In January 2012, K-1 Global Holdings Limited, a company registered in Hong Kong, acquired ...
. The question for STEM educators was how to prepare K-12 students to participate in solving the wicked problems associated with the Grand Challenges.EbD and the NAE Grand Challenges for Engineering." Technology and Engineering Teacher, vol. 71, no. 6, 2012, pp. 3, Education Database; ProQuest Central. One response was to align STEM program theories of learning and International Technology and Engineering Educators Association (ITEEA, formerly ITEA) Technological Literacy Standards with the National Academy of Engineering's Grand Challenges in order to guide current and pending curriculum development. NAE's objective was also to inform instructional practices, particularly dealing with the connections among science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education. The Technological Literacy Standards were funded by the
National Science Foundation The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent agency of the United States government that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National ...
and
NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil List of government space agencies, space program ...
and NAE's Technology Education Standards Committee led the Academy's efforts on the standards.


Global Grand Challenges Summit

As a result of NAE's Grand Challenge efforts, three national engineering academies–The National Academy of Engineering of the United States, The Royal Academy of Engineering of the United Kingdom, and the
Chinese Academy of Engineering The Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE, ) is the national academy of the People's Republic of China for engineering. It was established in 1994 and is an institution of the State Council of China. The CAE and the Chinese Academy of Sciences ...
–organized a joint ''Global Grand Challenges'' Summit, held in London on March 12–13, 2013. In September 2015 a second Global Grand Challenges Summit was held in Beijing, with more than 800 attendees invited by the three academies. The third Global Grand Challenges Summit was hosted by the NAE in the United States in 2017.


Frontiers of Engineering

The Frontiers of Engineering program assembles a group of emerging engineering leaders - usually aged 30–45 - to discuss cutting-edge research in various engineering fields and industry sectors. The goal of the meetings is to bring participants together to collaborate, network, and share ideas. There are three Frontiers of Engineering meetings every year: the U.S. Frontiers of Engineering Symposium, the German-American Frontiers of Engineering Symposium, and the Japan-America Frontiers of Engineering Symposium. The Indo-U.S. Frontiers of Engineering Symposium is held every other year.


Diversity in the Engineering Workplace

The goal of the diversity office is to participate in studies addressing the issue of increasing and broadening a domestic talent pool. Through this effort the NAE convenes workshops, coordinators with other organizations, and identifies program needs and opportunities for improvement. As part of this effort the NAE has launched both the EngineerGirl! and Engineer Your Life webpages.


Engineering, Economics, and Society

This program area studies connections between engineering, technology, and the economic performance of the United States. Efforts aim to advance the understanding of engineering's contribution to the sectors of the domestic economy and to learn where engineering may enhance economic performance. The project also aims to investigate the best ways to determine levels of technological literacy in the United States among three distinct populations in the United States: K-12 students, K-12 teachers, and out-of-school adults. A report (and associated website), ''Technically Speaking'', explains what "technological literacy" is, why it's important, and what is being done in the U.S. to improve it.


Engineering and the Environment

This program, recognizing that the engineering profession has often been associated with causing environmental harm, looks to recognize and publicize that the profession is now at the forefront of mitigating negative environmental impacts. The program will provide policy guidance to government, the private sector, and the public on ways to create a more environmentally sustainable future.


Center for the Advancement of Scholarship on Engineering Education

The Center for the Advancement of Scholarship on Engineering Education. was established to advance engineering education in the United States, aiming for curriculum changes that address the needs of new generations of engineering students and the unique problems they will face with the challenges of the 21st century. The Center worked closely with the Committee on Engineering Education, which works to improve the quality of engineering education by providing advice to policymakers, administrators, employers, and other stakeholders. The Center is no longer active within the National Academy of Engineering.


Center for Engineering, Ethics, and Society

The Center for Engineering, Ethics, and Society seeks to engage engineers and the engineering profession in identifying and resolving ethical issues associated with engineering research and practice. The Center works is closely linked with the Online Ethics Center.


Outreach efforts

To publicize the work of both the profession and the NAE, the institution puts considerable efforts into outreach activities. A weekly radio spot produced by the NAE is broadcast on WTOP radio in the Washington, DC area and the file and text of the spot can be found on the NAE site. The NAE also distributes a biweekly newsletter focusing on engineering issues and advancements. In addition, NAE has held a series of workshops titled ''News and Terrorism: Communicating in a Crisis,'' in which experts from the National Academies and elsewhere provide reporters, state and local public information officers, emergency managers, and representatives from the public sector with important information about weapons of mass destruction and their impact. This project is conducted in collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security and the Radio and Television News Directors Foundation. In addition to these efforts, the NAE fosters good relationships with members of the media to ensure coverage of the work of the institution and to serve as a resource for the media to use when they have technical questions or would like to speak to an NAE member on a particular matter. The NAE is also active in "social media," both to reach new and younger audiences and to reach traditional audiences in new ways.


Prizes

The Academy awards several prizes, with each recipient receiving $500,000. The prizes include the Bernard M.
Gordon Prize The Bernard M. Gordon Prize was started in 2001 by the United States National Academy of Engineering. Its purpose is to recognize leaders in academia for the development of new educational approaches to engineering. Each year, the Gordon Prize a ...
, the Fritz J. and Dolores H.
Russ Prize The Fritz J. and Dolores H. Russ Prize is an American national and international award established by the United States National Academy of Engineering (NAE) in October 1999 in Athens. Named after Fritz Russ, the founder of Systems Research Laborat ...
, and the Charles Stark
Draper Prize The U.S. National Academy of Engineering annually awards the Draper Prize, which is given for the advancement of engineering and the education of the public about engineering. It is one of three prizes that constitute the "Nobel Prizes of Enginee ...
. They are sometimes referred to collectively as the American version of a
Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...
for engineering.William A. Wulf and George M.C. Fisher "A Makeover for Engineering Education" Issues in Science & Technology Spring 2002 p. 35-39.


Gordon Prize

The ''Bernard M. Gordon Prize'' was started in 2001 by the NAE. It is named after Bernard Marshall Gordon, the founder of Analogic Corporation. Its purpose is to recognize leaders in academia for the development of new educational approaches to
engineering Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...
. Each year, the Gordon Prize awards $500,000 to the grantee, of which the recipient may personally use $250,000, and his or her institution receives $250,000 for the ongoing support of academic development.


Russ Prize

The Fritz J. and Dolores H. Russ Prize is an American national and international award established by the NAE in October 1999 in
Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
, Ohio. The prize has been given biennially in odd years since 2001. Named after Fritz Russ, the founder of Systems Research Laboratories, and his wife Dolores Russ, it recognizes a bioengineering achievement that "has had a significant impact on society and has contributed to the advancement of the human condition through widespread use." The award was instigated at the request of
Ohio University Ohio University is a public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confederation and subseq ...
to honor Fritz Russ, one of its alumni.


Charles Stark Draper Prize

The NAE annually awards the Charles Stark Draper Prize, which is given for the advancement of engineering and the education of the public about engineering. The recipient receives $500,000. The prize is named for Charles S. Draper, the "father of
inertial navigation An inertial navigation system (INS) is a navigation device that uses motion sensors ( accelerometers), rotation sensors ( gyroscopes) and a computer to continuously calculate by dead reckoning the position, the orientation, and the velocity ...
", an
MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the m ...
professor and founder of the
Draper Laboratory Draper Laboratory is an American non-profit research and development organization, headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts; its official name is The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, Inc (sometimes abbreviated as CSDL). The laboratory specialize ...
.


See also

* National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine *
List of founding members of the National Academy of Engineering This is a list of the founding members of the United States National Academy of Engineering. * Hendrik Wade Bode * Walker Lee Cisler * Hugh Latimer Dryden * Elmer William Engstrom * William Littell Everitt * Antoine Marc Gaudin * Michael Law ...
*
List of members of the National Academy of Engineering This is a full list of the 2251 current members of the United States National Academy of Engineering, each of whom is affiliated with one of 12 disciplinary sections. This list does not include deceased members. In addition there are 206 foreign ...
* List of engineering awards


References


External links


Official NAE website

The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century (2004)
* NAE Grand Challenges for Engineering repor
(2008 Report)(2017 Update of 2008 document)

National Academy of Engineering Grand Challenge Scholars Program Plan (2010)


an

Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy information
Greatest Engineering Achievements

ROBERT W. RUMMEL (1915–2009) obituary at NAE site
{{authority control National academies of engineering United States National Academies United States National Academy of Engineering 1964 establishments in Washington, D.C. Organizations established in 1964 History of engineering 20th century in technology